Constitutional nationalism's implications for minority rights and democratization: the case of Slovakia

Exclusively Our People: Defining Tribalism through the Slovak Case

“…after Communism ended in east central europe, the region underwent complex social and political transformations involving the establishment and consolidation of democracy as well as the redefinition of statehood. 49 While the perception of Slovak nationalism as the main wedge that drove Czechoslovakia apart is a false one, 50 the first prime minister of independent Slovakia, Vladimir Mečiar, spearheaded the founding of a constitutionally nationalist country, 51 which differentiated ethnic Slovak citizens from citizens belonging to ethnic minority groups in the language of the constitution even as it guaranteed broad legal and political rights for ethnic minorities. The establishment of the new Slovak state changed interethnic relations within the region.…”

“…53 From the very beginning of Slovakia's existence as an independent country, the distinction of Slovaks from Hungarians and Czechs played a role in Slovak nation-building. 54 Mečiar and his allies did not pull this division out of thin air, but rather built upon more than a century of Slovak nation-building on an anti-Hungarian basis 55 and on Slovak ethnonationalism. The Slovak national movement began in the 19th century, when the land that now makes up Slovakia was part of the Hungarian Kingdom of the austro-Hungarian empire, and Ľudovít Štúr's codification of the Slovak language in the face of Magyarization efforts in the Slovak lands provided an important cultural identity marker; 56 for example, Magyarization efforts in Slovak cities 57 and Hungary's repeated refusal to recognize Slovaks as a specific national entity or allow for Slovak linguistic and cultural development 58 hindered the development of a Slovak political identity, until World War I (WWI) presented the opportunity for Slovak society to develop politically, with Czech help.…”

Constitution‐writing, nationalism and the Turkish experience

“…Of course, the content of nationalism and how it makes its way into the constitutional texts could best be studied on a continuum. Different from the Hungarian example, in the Slovakian case, for instance, the preamble distinctly differentiates the ethnic Slovak nation and establishes the ‘distinction between the Slovak nation and minority nationalities’ (Nedelsky : 109).…”

The Uneasy Road towards Remedying the Economic and Cultural Disadvantage of the Roma in Slovakia

“…Slovaks received their first real taste of territorial and political independence only recently, and since then have been actively involved in the project of nation-building and asserting their distinct national identity. 92 The Romani movement has also been involved in promoting the idea of Romani difference: through the idea of common nationhood among dispersed Romani communities at the transnational level and through their recognition as a minority at the national level. 93 In her later writings, Fraser searches for a more politically workable institutional alternative.…”